I took my glucose/gestational diabetes test today for this pregnancy. I hadn’t remembered this until I drank the yucky drink and drove myself to get the blood drawn for the test, but last time when I was pregnant with Alex – I thought I would surely “fail” the test and end up with gestational diabetes. I had no idea what it felt like with gestational diabetes, but I didn’t feel good and thought that this must be it. I was surprised when the doctor told me that everything was normal.

This time when taking the yucky drink (yuckier than I remember – like un-carbonated sweet orange pop) I don’t feel bad – I actually feel good. Yeah – my back hurts and my belly is getting bigger and more difficult to lug around. I have to be more careful when turning over and my belly is even running into things before the rest of me arrives, like the grocery store cart or the kitchen sink.

For the first time (for me) – I feel and know there is hope for another outcome to this pregnancy than what happened when I had Alex 6 weeks early due to severe pre-eclampsia. I feel like there is a real chance that I will have a full term baby that is able to come home from the hospital when I do.

The statistics are confusing – because I’ve had pre-eclampsia before – I’m at greater risk (from 5-8% for general population to ~25% from what I’ve read), but at the same time, most people who get pre-eclampsia are first time Moms.

So, I don’t understand it and can’t really explain all the statistics – all I know is that are just that – Statistics. Not necessarily what is going to happen to me and our little baby girl.

I was taking Alex to preschool the other day while Lance was out of town for business, usually he does the drop-offs. It was Alex’s new preschool and he was telling me he didn’t want to go (totally normal at this point – the first week). I told him it wasn’t the old preschool and he seemed like this made a little difference, but still not totally buying it.

I said – You have to go to preschool and play with toys and Mommy has to go working and make money.

He said – No, you go to preschool and play with toys and I go working and make money. I said that I would love to, but unfortunately I had to go to work that day and we made plans for what we would do that night to have fun together.

Well, this past weekend in Leavenworth he demonstrated just how smart he is becoming…

We were walking downtown to go to dinner at a restaurant and we walked past a bank. He asked if that was the restaurant and we said no, it was a bank. He asked what a bank was and we told him that is where there is money.

We have started yet another new preschool and this one is GREAT so far. Alex has adjusted pretty well, better than expected. He had some crying as we dropped him off for about 1 week. The teachers are all great and so attentive, Ms. Jodi is the owner and has her two boys (2 and 4) there part time. Miss Lizzie is the head teacher and there 40 hours per week. There is Mr. Eric and Ms. Jen are part-time teachers. There are about 10-12 other kids there, about 1/2 girls 1/2 boys anywhere from the ages of 16 months to 4 years old.

The other kids are very friendly and so are the parents. Many have come up to us and introduced themselves. Alex has met a new good friend, Kai who is 4 years old. They have been playing together a lot. They have a big tool bench with lots of tools, many that we don’t have at home. With the current fascination with tools lately, this is a big draw everyday. Also, they have lots of different fire trucks, big trucks, small trucks, noisy trucks, wooden trucks, battery operated remote control fire trucks!

They have the dizzy bus ( http://www.dizzys-tumblebus.com/ ) come on Wednesdays which has become an instant hit! It’s a bus that has been converted into a mobile playground. With monkey bars and things to climb on, they have weekly themes. Sometimes they pretend they are animals and sometimes they are firefighters.

The outside playground is all paved and there is a big basketball hoop (yet another current fascination) and there are lots of trikes and bikes. Mr. Eric picks Alex up to make hoops he says.

They do all the typical stuff: read books, sing songs, free-play time, play-doh, arts and crafts, etc. In the summer they will go to the library which is within walking distance and a park nearby. What we know is there is a lot of fun activities that keeps the kids busy here and Alex just soaks it up.

They do diaper changes all at the same time and we hope that Alex will start being interested. We bought big boy underwear and have them at home and he loves wearing them. He has showed a new interest lately and we are going with it! He has gone pee in the potty at home quite a few times but doesn’t connect everything yet. But, I feel like we’re off to a good start. I have no illusions that he will be potty trained before our little baby girl gets here, but I do see that this summer will be a good time for all that.

So far, we really like this preschool. We are encouraged to come in and get our child adjusted. They have a genuine interest in learning about him, no tv, no fighting, the drop offs are getting better especially when we mention Dizzy bus. Age appropriate activities (no coloring in the lines, preschool that only works on letters and numbers, and supervision at all times.

This preschool has been in business for ~ 3 years and I can see how Alex will fit here for a long time, I hope. We are so glad that we listened to our instincts and make the tough decision to change preschools again. I can’t even imagine what it would be like if we were still taking him to the old preschool! It was tough, but so worth it! It’s even about $150 cheaper per month!

We had a fantastic time this last weekend in Leavenworth, Wa. It was Lance’s very thoughtful gift to me this Christmas and we enjoyed ourselves fully. As he said to me, we don’t know when our next vacation will be – probably 2011, so might as well have TONS of fun!

After arriving on Friday afternoon, just ahead of a rock slide that closed Hwy 2 and a long detour (thank goodness!), we settled into our hotel right in “downtown” Leavenworth. We played in the snow at a little park right by the hotel and got our hands in the snow for a bit before it got dark for the night.

We decided to find a place for sledding in the morning and found a perfect spot at the riverfront park. This turned out to be the best fun! Alex absolutely LOVED sledding and his most favorite phrase the entire weekend was “let’s do it again” meaning he wanted to sled down the hill again, and again, and again! Lance had to do most of the sledding duties as I’m now 6+ months pregnant, but I did go a couple of times on the smaller hills.

Alex closing his eyes and Daddy steering with his hands on a sledding hill

Mommy having a good time sledding down the bunny hill

Daddy would often pull Alex up the hill in the sled because he liked it so much

The three (I guess, four) of us! Our littlest one is tucked inside my winter coat and you can’t see her other than the fact I can’t quite button my coat all the way!

Big smiles were had by Alex all weekend long.

We went sledding in the morning and guess what? Sledding in the afternoon. Daddy got a workout that day! Here are a few pictures of what it looks like when you’re tired and you just want to sled some more, but have to go back to the hotel to take a nap.

On Sunday we woke up to a few fresh inches of snow and we got ready for a horse-drawn sleigh ride. It was beautiful! It was so quiet and peaceful out on the trail and with all the trees freshly sprinkled with snow. Alex had a good time and even got to pet the big horses.

After this big day and after a little bit of a rough night (we realized it was his first time ever sleeping in a hotel room!) Alex took a 3 hour nap! We only had a short time to go sledding that afternoon and it was a good thing because it was lightly raining/sleeting.

We headed home on Monday to clean up and get back to real life. Here are a few other pictures I took during our wonderful weekend – Enjoy!

With the continuing fascination with tools comes the desire for a “real wood toolbox”. Not the toy variety, oh no.

We were at Home Depot the other day (aka “the man store” as Lance calls it) and they had those demonstration desks near the front of the store. There just so happened to be a little kid workshop that they were advertising for – you guessed it – a real wooden toolbox was on the table.

Alex begged and pleaded – he NEEDED it for his tools. He WANTED it for his tools, he wasn’t leaving without it!

So, Lance promised that they would make him his own “real wood toolbox” and that is just what they did this weekend.

I have to ask him – can Mama take a picture with you and your new wood toolbox? Yeah – he says. I guess so. He’s got his hand on his tape measurer – that is hook to his pants. Are you done yet?

So, then I have to ask – can you measure it for me? I want to know how big it is. So he gets out his tape measurer and measures it for me.

Now – as Grandma Connie AND as Grandma Sandy said earlier – he’s ready for his “real” tools.

What a great Dad to have made this for him. Alex didn’t like all the noise of some of the tools but was content with his new passion – golfing with Daddy’s golf club and a “real” golf ball outside so that Daddy could do some of the loud work. He helped some and golfed a lot. He is very happy and proud of his new real toolbox – so much so – that he even took it to his bed and took a nap with it!

Alex started out with just wanting a big hammer like his Dad… then he realized he could ask for more and more (little did he know that his Dad was listening and got him EVERYTHING he asked for!). We had a nice Christmas this year.

A chainsaw like my Dad and Grandpa T. so he can cut down trees. This one is now banished to be an “outside toy” to be “just like his Dad’s”. Momma – why do you make all these rules?

What’s this monstrosity? Oh – a Basketball hoop (so Daddy doesn’t have to stand and be the basketball hoop for hours on end)

Once those two presents were opened – it was all over. Alex was so happy he didn’t need anything else. We couldn’t rip the basketball out of his hands!OK Mom – just one picture – but make it fast! I have basketball to play!

Take a “nap” with Grandpa T. Looks like Grandpa T. is checking up to make sure Alex is napping!

and if you thought that was enough – oh no! Dad got him a Jeep! Oh yes – a Jeep!

And a visit by our neighbor – a sheriff! “No officer – I wasn’t speeding on the road and I swear I have a license!”

We went to the park the day after Xmas and played real basketball with Dad being the lifter this time. And then finally – on the 26th – Alex opened up a present from Mommy – a ukelele – aka a guitar to sing songs and make Moo-sic. Here is Grandma Connie showing Alex how to play.